Kilcommon set to host 85th West Board GAA convention

3 Dec 2013

0

The West Tipperary GAA Board convention will be held in the Sean Treacy’s GAA Centre, Kilcommon on this Thursday, December 5th at 8pm. This is the second time for the convention to be hosted by the Sean Treacy’s club, the last being in 1994 when it was held in Hollyford. This year represents the division’s 85th annual convention.

The West Tipperary GAA Board convention will be held in the Sean Treacy’s GAA Centre, Kilcommon on this Thursday, December 5th at 8pm.

This is the second time for the convention to be hosted by the Sean Treacy’s club, the last being in 1994 when it was held in Hollyford. This year represents the division’s 85th annual convention.

As in most conventions the aspect which creates the greatest interest is an election and there will be one for the position of vice-chairman of the board. The out-going vice-chairman Richard O’Connor (Arravale Rovers) is being challenged by John O’Shea (Clonoulty-Rossmore) for the position and that contest should bring out full delegations from the clubs.

Out-going treasurer Sean Bradshaw, who has done such a good job over the past number of years, has to stand down because of the five-year rule.

In this case there is only one nomination for the position - Willie O’Grady of Rosegreen, who has been gate-checker for a good number of years.

There are two motions on the clár, but, as so often happens, neither of them can be passed because they involve the running of particular championships which is the brief of the CCC.

The two motions in question come from the Arravale Rovers club. The first proposes one group in the Junior B hurling championship while the second concerns the minor hurling and football championships and proposes that they be run ‘in one group on a round robin basis’.

Secretary’s Report

The secretary, Michael Lonergan, has produced an interesting and comprehensive handbook for convention, He is vey much concerned with developments at county level and fears for the future of the division.

He believes that the divisional senior hurling championship is about to be degraded in the same way as the football championship was in 2013. He states that “if the senior hurling and football championships are eroded in the divisions and absorbed into the the county championships then surely the divisions will become irrelevant and economically unviable”.

He congratulates Bórd nas nÓg on an outstanding year which saw them winning six county titles and two inter-divisional titles - “I congratulate the officers and thank them for their dedication and commitment”. However, he goes on to express his disappointment at the number of disciplinary notices issued by Bord na nÓg CCC in relation to the conduct of some mentors and supporters.

He concludes his report by congratulating the players from the division who were members of the county intermediate All-Ireland winning team. They included Tom Treacy (Cappawhite), Padraig Heffernan, Timmy Hammersley, John O’Keeffe and Thomas Butler (Clonoulty-Rossmore), Brian Fox and Kevin Fox (Eire Óg), Denis Stapleton (Sean Treacy’s) and Paddy Dalton (Arravale Rovers). Also, selector Eamon O’Dwyer (Arravale Rovers).

Treasurer’s Report

The treasurer’s report does not make happy reading. The bottom line is that income was well down on the 2012 figure.

Total gate receipts amounted to €35,081 as against €49,653 the previous year, a decline of €14,572 or, in percentage terms, over 40%. The figure is somewhat distorted by the fact that the accounts cover eleven months only, as they had to be closed off on September 30th, but even so there is no way the deficit would be made up by the takings during the month of October.

There are two factors responsible for the decline. Because of the tight deadlines for the senior hurling championship, some of the first rounds had to be played in early April and in some cases in midweek, The number of people attending these early games was very small and it took a while for supporters to realise that the championship had started.

A second factor was the decline in the number of football games. There were really only three games, two semi-finals and a final and this reduced the income from this source.

Another cause of concern is the decline in the income from season tickets. There was a drop of over €2000 in this area, from €8,130 in 2012 to €5,845.

If you wish, you can contact us using any of the methods below: Tipperary Star,Friar Street,Thurles, Co TipperaryEmail: news@tipperarystar.ieTelephone: 0504 29100

This website and its associated newspaper are full participating members of the Press Council of Ireland and supports the Office of the Press Ombudsman. This scheme in addition to defending the freedom of the press, offers readers a quick, fair and free method of dealing with complaints that they may have in relation to articles that appear on our pages. To contact the Office of the Press Ombudsman go to www.pressombudsman.ie or www.presscouncil.ie Tipparary Star provides news, events and sport features from the Tipperary area. For the best up to date information relating to Tipperary and the surrounding areas visit us at Tipperary Star regularly or bookmark this page.